The Ninth Passenger
Chapter 1. The Charterer The vibration of the deck shifted from a measured tremor to a deep, low hum. The M.V. "Protagoras" was picking up speed, leaving the dirty port waters and the last, fog-melting silhouette of the mainland in its wake. In the ship's main lounge—a room finished in expensive but impersonal teak and matte steel—a thick, awkward silence reigned. It consisted of ten pockets of silence. In the corner, her back to everyone, a teenage girl ( Chloe ) was tracing the rivets on the wall with her finger, her lips moving soundlessly. At the central table, a middle-aged woman ( Eleanor ) methodically laid out cards; the shuffle of the deck was the only sound she made. A man ( Sajlas ) sat in a chair by the bulkhead. He was so still he seemed part of the interior. Only one person disturbed the atmosphere. A young woman ( Mia ) by the porthole, clutching the strap of her backpack, was rhythmically flipping a coin. A man ( Arthur ), sitting opposite and ...